I'm jealous! I am so a fan of BF..I want to be that big and awesome one day....I love the way they stay positive too....
I want to go to the How to Start a Sanctuary program, but it is sold out through this whole year already..and you have to stay a week so it would be quite expensive. It is $500 for the program, plus lodging, transportation, meals, etc. On 2/23/07, wendy <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Hey guys, I have been trying to write this email since I got back to work Wednesday, but for some reason, there's actually work here to do that has kept me away! lol. Not to mention that my husband and I were caught in a snow storm on the freeway just south of Flagstaff, AZ, Monday afternoon, and sat in the car from about 3 pm to 12 am watching a ton of snow fall as well as our gas gauge go down. Exciting and scary. We missed our flight out and didn't get to fly back home until the next day after spending the night in the rental car! Crazy! So the workload had piled up when I got back Wednesday. Anyway, I wanted to tell you guys about our trip to the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, Utah (pronounced Ku-nab, short 'u' and the 'a' like the 'a' in 'kidnap', instead of ku-knob, which is what I thought it was all this time). It was great! I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a little vacation. They even have cottages on-site, where you can have a 'sleepover' with one of the dogs they have there. They like to know how the dogs do out of a pack situation, and the sleepovers are a great way to find out. The sanctuary was better than I expected. I was afraid I would be let down, because I've always thought so highly of the organization, but I was not. One of the exciting things there is the Casa De Calmar, the FeLV building, built solely for kitties with FeLV! It houses no more than 15 cats per section, 3 sections, and then there's about four 'lobby' kitties. So no more than about 50 FeLV kitties. I volunteered mostly there, and also at the Kitty Motel, the building for kitties with special needs. They have FIV kitties, kitties with only two legs, blind kitties, kitties who have had surgery or a cast, kitties with allergies, etc. I sponsor a kitty there named Regina. Casa De Calmar was built with funds from a man after his wife, an avid cat lover, passed away. He donated $500,000, I believe, to build the unit, which I think is fantastic. Now I know the question that all of you are wanting to ask, "What protocols do they follow for FeLV." I was VERY surprised to find that they give intra-MUSCULAR (not IV or subQ!) injections of ImmunoRegulin every two weeks. They also give Lysine via syringes in the mouth, but I forgot how often. They completely change out the litter boxes (there are a lot) twice a day and clean them with bleach, twice a day. They said it cuts down on spreading the corona virus. The kitties are fed freely, wet and dry. I didn't get the name of the food, but I think it's a local brand like the dog food. I imagine it's probably good food. All the kitties there look very happy and healthy, although we all know that there are losses because of the FeLV. However, they actually have a Siamese kitty there who is 21 YEARS OLD!!! Can you believe that? I met a lady there who runs Casa De Calmar, who was the nicest person. Her name is Joanie, I think, and she is VERY knowledgeable about FeLV. I asked her lots of questions, and it seems BF is very up-to-date on FeLV protocol, and doing everything they can for these kitties. She mentioned Interferon, but I can't remember what she said about it. I invited her into this group, so maybe one day she will sign up. Her knowledge and helpfullness will be of great value. The buildings are cool. They have 'runs' coming out of each side. So each inside octagonal unit for the dogs, there is a big run attached to it that they use freely. The kitties also have attached, outside units. Two animal doors per run to cut down on 'bullying' or competitiveness. Inside the kitty's outside unit are big 'branches' going into the unfinished rafters. They even have litter boxes up there! Lots of places to lie in and play. Toys. Inside, there are little cubbie holes, and there's always kitties in there. Lots of things to jump on and climb on; lots of height. While my husband was filming, this kitty in one of the FIV rooms jumped on his head. It was hilarious! We met lots of great kitties there. It's a wonderful place. If I were a kitty, I'm not sure I'd want to leave! There is a giant orange, long haired tabby named "Judah". He is such a love. But my heart went to another. I fell in love with a kitty there named "Toshie". Have lots of pics of her. SOOOO playful and beautiful and sweet. Joanie said she's incredibly smart, too. I would so adopt her if I didn't already have four negatives living in the house. I hope I didn't jump around too much. I wanted to cover everything, but I know I didn't. If anyone wants to ask more questions, feel free. We should plan a group trip there one day. I have lots of photos if any of you would like to see them. Does anyone know how many megabytes I can send out via yahoo email? :) Wendy ____________________________________________________________________________________ Cheap talk? Check out Yahoo! Messenger's low PC-to-Phone call rates. http://voice.yahoo.com
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